Watch the birdies

The Big Bird Watch aims to raise awareness about avian life.

It’s a big weekend for wildlife. As well as the free booklets with this weekend's Telegraph, it is also the RSPB’s Big Bird Watch weekend, which aims to raise awareness about Britain’s avian life.

Photographer Gavin Parsons is doing his bit. Each year hundreds of hatchlings are brought to rescue centres after their nests have been disturbed, or when they have been mistakenly picked up by members of the public after they have fledged. They need constant care, which is provided mostly by volunteers.

Parsons shoots the birds as if they were human models, in close up against a white background. “You can tell that the birds have characters,” he says. “The robins especially and the corvids [crow species]. Some were inquisitive and wanted to hop about, others were calm and composed.”

All you need to make a bird bath is a terracotta pot and saucer, some glue and a few stones.

1 Scrub clean the base of your terracotta pot, then apply a generous layer of waterproof glue or tile adhesive to the base.

2 Place the saucer on the pot’s base. Leave it for 24 hours to ensure the glue dries thoroughly.

3 Place the bath in a suitable spot, such as the edge of a border. Add stones so birds can perch to drink water.

No-waste feeding

Bird feeders and tables can become unsightly with uneaten food. Here are some ways to minimise the mess.

As a rule, hanging feeders are less messy than ground feeders or platform tables, because they are more exposed to the elements. £ Avoid the cheapest mixes, as they are more likely to contain filler mixes that birds don’t like.

If any of the foods you put out remain uneaten after a week or so, stop using. Try not to leave food on tables overnight, as this is peak time for rats.

Remember to wash and resite your feeders every few weeks, or stop feeding for a while, to help your lawn recover and to prevent disease.

Your neighbourhood determines bird diversity more than food variety. If you live surrounded by buildings, species will stay limited and you’re better off not trying niger seed and other expensive foods.

A version of this feature appeared in Gardeners’ World magazine. The February issue is out now, priced £3.80 with free summer bulbs, snowdrops and poppies.